My best friend, Amy Risinger, was in an unimaginable accident that has created financial needs for her and the Risinger family. On January 26, 2025, a tree being cut down fell on top of her SUV while she was traveling on Sandswitch Road in Hixson, TN with her six-year-old child in the backseat. Bystanders at the scene of the accident removed Amy’s six-year-old child, miraculously uninjured, from the vehicle before first responders arrived.

Thankfully, the skillful hands of the Chattanooga Fire Department (CFD) and other emergency responders were able to retrieve her from her entrapment. They utilized not only cribbing to retrieve Amy from the SUV, but also airbags to lift the massive tree. I am beyond grateful to the CFD Firefighters for their clever and beautifully executed extraction procedure.

In the accident, Amy was pinned by the dashboard, the windshield, and the weight of the tree causing significant injuries. She has numerous compression fractures of the thoracic spine, a concussion, and severe dental injuries that will all need to be attended to throughout this healing journey.

With the various injuries, specialists, exams, and treatment are needed causing significant hardships to the Risinger family. The financial circumstances are understandably one of the most difficult aspects to overcome, as willpower does not cover expenses. In addition to Amy’s accident preventing her from being able to work, her husband, Joshua Risinger, was laid off from work in January. While he is continuing to actively seek employment, he is also working to care for Amy and the rest of the family.

Amy is a blessed mother of four beautiful children that are not without hardships and needs in this difficult time. In addition to her six-year-old child that was in the backseat during his horrific accident, Amy has three other children, a teenager, and two adult children (one of whom with special needs).

Amy is one of the most amazing humans I have ever had the opportunity to meet. She has been my best friend, my person, my safe place, and an essential part of my life. Our lives have become intertwined over the last almost decade of friendship. Her joy is my joy and her pain is my pain, and vice versa.

It has been so challenging to see what she has endured with this horrific accident. Her resilience and unwavering faith in God is unlike anything I’ve witnessed. I truly believe her unshakeable faith has been instrumental in the forward movements she has made towards wellness. Nonetheless, she still has goals to meet and the healing journey will be one of fortitude.

It is my hope that you will consider contributing to assist Amy and her family. If you are unable to donate, please share and encourage others to donate to rally behind Amy and the Risinger family during this immensely difficult time.